


Sorted Out of Order

by Quivo (quivo)



Category: Harry Potter - Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen, Young Snape, marauder era, sorting AU, young Lily
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-10-26
Updated: 2008-11-12
Packaged: 2017-10-02 02:26:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1653
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/quivo/pseuds/Quivo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An eternity passed before they finally called his name. Once he sat down, Severus kept as still as he could on the hard little stool, wishing he could delay what was coming somehow. He’d never thought of Gryffindor, for her. Ravenclaw would have been fine. Hufflepuff, manageable, but Gryffindor?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Sorting

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Three Dwindling Suns](https://archiveofourown.org/works/422) by [Quivo (quivo)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/quivo/pseuds/Quivo). 
  * Inspired by [Three Dwindling Suns](https://archiveofourown.org/works/422) by [Quivo (quivo)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/quivo/pseuds/Quivo). 



> Thanks to [fizzylizard](http://fizzylizard.livejournal.com) for looking this over for me.

An eternity passed before they finally called his name. Once he sat down, Severus kept as still as he could on the hard little stool, wishing he could delay what was coming somehow. He’d never thought of Gryffindor, for her. Ravenclaw would have been fine. Hufflepuff, manageable, but Gryffindor?

And with that bloody Potter, too. She was sitting next to Black, not looking at him, but that probably wouldn’t last. Compared to Severus—

The hat descended, cutting into Severus’ thoughts.

“Whew,” a voice said, in his ear. The hat, surely. Mum had said it…talked. Severus’ fingers curled about the rim of the stool, but he refused to even think of being afraid of something that wasn’t alive.

“Wouldn’t go that far,” the hat said, smugly. “Children are so _literal_. At least you’ll be easy. You’d curse me right now, if you thought you could get away with it.” The hat shifted on Severus head, probably gloating. “Oh, and here, your mother was a Prince.”

“Wait,” Severus said, his eyes on Lily, betraying him. “Just you wait.” He flexed his fingers, releasing the rim at his sides. _I can just ask_, he told himself. That was all it would be, really; asking. “Would I…fit…anywhere else?”

The hat gave a strangled sigh, rippling around his head in a distinctly unnerving manner. “Gryffindor, you mean?”

“I didn’t—”

“I know you didn’t,” the hat said, quietly. “Hush and let me think.”

Severus bit his lip. From his mum, that usually meant no. From Da…definitely not. So he waited, refusing to let himself slouch. His mother had been very clear on the first impression he’d need to make. Not wanting to have to make it didn’t mean he could just let it go.

“Let it go,” the hat said, its tone suddenly sharp. “You hear me, boy? You’re a Gryffindor now—you don’t need to give a boar’s balls what kind of impression you make.”

“_What?_ But—”

“Get up,” the hat ordered. “You know what table it is.” The hat swelled. “Get on over to GRYFFINDOR!”

Severus did. It felt surreal to take off the hat, set it down on the stool, and walk over there like he didn’t care. They cheered for him, too. There wasn’t a seat free next to Lily, but there was one two seats across from her, and Severus slid into it, feeling like there was too much of him to fit.

“What happened to Slytherin?” Lily said, eyes wide and curious and everything he wanted to see.

“Dunno,” Severus said, with a stray glance back at the hat, which had just cheerfully declared a Ravenclaw. “I really don’t.”

“It was your greasy head,” Potter said, nudging Black. “We’re the only house brave enough to take it!”

People laughed around Severus. But Lily rolled her eyes and glared at Potter, and for once it didn’t matter.


	2. After Sorting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Lily complained about the teasing later on, Jemima Burrows had just rolled her eyes. "He was going to be a Slytherin, wasn't he?" she'd said, offhand. "You heard Potter. Probably thinks he's better than us."

  


It was all very strange, sitting by Severus the next morning. He looked less dazed now, which was good. Calm, he looked less like a wiry, tense little stick. Calm, he looked stronger, less breakable. Less of a target.

Last night, Lily hadn’t wanted to think about the way he’d been treated on the train. Potter and Black had gone on teasing him once he sat down at the Gryffindor table, trading off stupid jokes about Severus’ hair and skin and patched robe in return for sniggers from whoever was listening. Five jokes in, one of the boys with a gold badge on his front had called down and told them to pack it in, but the laughter had just got quieter.

When Lily complained about the teasing later on, Jemima Burrows had just rolled her eyes. “He was going to be a Slytherin, wasn’t he?” she’d said, offhand. “You heard Potter. Probably thinks he’s better than us.”

“Which is why Black called him poor as a church snake,” Lily had shot back. “Honestly, he’s such a hypocrite—just hours ago, I heard him talking about how _his_ family have always been in Slytherin.” Jemima had rolled her eyes and unwillingly changed the subject to something about the house Kwidditch team. Lily hadn’t been able to say anything about that, or about anything else the other girls talked about for the rest of the night.

“Flying lessons’ll start next week,” Jemima said excitedly, two or three seats away. “Merlin, I wish they’d let first years on the team.”

“Bet you could, too,” Georgiana Hooper said. “Father brought us all up last year for the Gryffindor-Hufflepuff match, and they flattened us.”

“Oh no, how come?”

“Grimstone’s their seeker, and he’s really good,” Georgiana said. “He made this brilliant little catch at the end—flew round all over after the snitch, and so fast—”

“_Flew_?” Lily muttered, to herself. That didn’t sound like a real sport, or a real anything Lily’d ever heard of.

“They play it on brooms,” Severus muttered, opposite her. He pinked when she looked at him, but kept going. “It’s really popular and everything—there’s a league, and an world cup.”

“No way,” Lily said, shaking her head. “_Someone_ would’ve noticed people flying around all over the place on brooms.”

“Nah, they’ve got charms. Like, listen, remember the invisible cloak I told you about? Well, they have charms that can make everything invisible. Sort of, to muggles. Petunia wouldn’t be able to see it, but we would.”

“Oh.” Lily sighed. “That does make sense, I suppose. I just—it’s so strange.”

Severus was almost smiling, now. “What, were you expecting them to have footy here?”

“Well, no,” Lily said, unable to help an answering smile. “Not really.”

Severus shrugged. “Well,” he muttered. “It’s not like either of us could’ve played even footy here anyway.”

_I could’ve played netball_, Lily thought. But all she said was, “You don’t know how to play Kwidditch?”

Severus looked down in Jemima’s direction—Potter and Black had just sat down with the other two boys, and were all laughing about something. “No,” he said. “Doesn’t matter though.” He grabbed another roll from the platter in front of him. “It’s just a _game_. We’re here for magic, you know?”

“Yeah,” Lily said, eyeing Jemima. _She_ wouldn’t think of it that way, but then she was an idiot . “I know.”


End file.
